Good Brew & The River — Restaurant in Scotland

Visited The River recently with a party of 4, with the restaurant being slightly busy but expected for a Saturday. Starters came out in a normal time, which were okay, but our plates were left for nearly an hour which is how long it took for our mains to arrive.

We understood it was busy, which we communicated to the waiting staff, but there was no attempt by the staff to apologise for the wait or to make us aware of when the food was coming. We only found out after a member of our table had to ask at the bar.

Food eventually arrived and can only be described as "fine". However, a member of our table ordered fish and chips with "mushy peas" which looked more like a dry, yellow chickpea terrine and it was inedible.

We wanted to leave soon after at this point, but after we asked for the bill, a bottle of prosecco (organised and arranged as a gift by a friend) was brought out. The staff apologised as this was meant to be out hours before, the request was that the bottle was on the table for arrival and this did not happen.

One of the members of my table communicated that she wouldn't be having any prosecco so the waitress offered to get her another drink instead. She ordered her drink and we went to pay the bill afterwards, which still took 20 mins and we had to approach the bar again. To sum up the shambolic night, we were then charged for the extra drink that was offered by the waitress. You'd think at this stage, after the terrible service and the fact they forgot to bring out the prosecco, they would have taken the drink off the menu - especially as the drink was offered as an alternative. The staff at the bar weren't willing to listen and we still had to pay at the end.

A frustrating and disappointing night, despite the fact we we communicated to the staff there that night that we understood they were understaffed.

The Good Brew part of the restaurant, which operates as a cafe/bistro downstairs has always been great but totally differs from The River upstairs. My second time visiting and it will be the...

I normally really like Good Brew and the food/drink is excellent. It can be hard to get a table without booking but that’s to be expected in a popular place with limited seating. Today I visited with 3 colleagues. We were given a choice of 2 tables on arrival. We chose a quiet table in the corner. Around half an hour into our visit and before we had even got our food, a member of staff approached to say they had just had a call for a last minute booking for 6 and we would need to be away from the table within 30 minutes. We were told that we could move to another table in half an hour “if one becomes available.” I think it is unprofessional to seat a group of 4, take our order and then rush us to finish when the food has not even arrived because you’d rather have a slightly bigger party. We were spending a reasonable amount with you today as we ordered multiple drinks and a meal each. The correct solution is surely to provide an alternative time for the last minute booking. We finished our first round of food and took our custom to another local business for dessert, coffees etc, though this was not our original plan. If we were going to have to move, we’d much rather move to a business that is happy to have us and allows a reasonable amount of time for our visit. Your seating policy also needs to be reviewed - a booth the same size as ours had one man sitting with a coffee. He obviously has as much of a right as us to be there and I’m not suggesting he should have been asked to move instead but why sit him at such a big table when that could have been free for your larger booking? The food was nice but service...

Prebooked a window table for the views. Arrived at the exact time booked only to find that there was no window table reserved and they were full at the windows. Staff checked the booking and apologised for this being missed. We said we'd take a walk and they could call us when the couple drinking coffee were leaving.

20 minutes later we returned and were greted by the same staff member who didn't recognise us from 20 minutes previous!!!!

The couple were still drinking their coffee so we said we'd have a seat and have some drinks. Waited an eternity to get served for drinks. The staff member who brought the coke and the beer didn't remember who was having what after taking the order. Probably due to the fact it took nearly 10 minutes to bring the order over.

We decided to forget the window table and eat where we were. Again when the food came the staff member didn't remember who was eating what.!!

When it came to paying. We asked for the bill. The member of staff said she would get it then went behind the counter to sort glasses or plates. I decided to approach her at the counter to pay. I said I'll pay the bill. Her reply was where was I sitting again.

I don't know what was going on. Staff being forgetful and slow the whole visit. I bet they remember I forgot to leave a tip.

The food and drink were good as always but the service was atrocious. Ruined the trip...